THE STORY OF INDIAN RESERVATION

One of the most raging debates in our country and among the youth is on the concept of reservation. Whether to have a reservation system or not is a question that needs to be debated upon and answered. 

" Though the Article.15(1) of the Constitution says that the “State shall not discriminate any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them”, it also provides for compensatory or protective discrimination in favor of certain sections of the disadvantaged people. Article 15(4) of the Constitution stipulates that notwithstanding the provision stated above, the State can make “special provision for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes”." - NCIE

The following table reflects the typical caste-based reservation profile:

SC and SC Converts to Buddhism	13.0%
STs	7.0%
Vimukta Jati	3.0%
Nomadic Tribes (NTI)	2.5%
Nomadic Tribes (NT2)	3.5%
Nomadic Tribes (NT3)	2.0%
OBC	19.0%
Total	50.0%

So, we see that the Indian Constitution has a law, and by this law - 'Reservation was made to bring underprivileged classes on par with the general or privileged ones.
Our country now sees a variety of reservations, for women, physically challenged, based on economically backward status and most importantly, based on caste.

Scheduled Castes(SC) and Scheduled Tribes(ST) constitute approx. 22.5% of India's population. And a reservation equal to 22.5% (SC - 15% and ST 7.5%) has been made. On top of this a concession is made on the qualifying marks, by about 5-10%.

Though reservation clearly discriminates, it was once started with a good objective of uplifting the unprivileged section of society, so as to ensure equal opportunities. But due to lack of checks and effective measures, people have started misusing it. There are innumerable examples of students making fake documents/certificates just to get a seat in an educational institution.

Despite crossing numerous decades of independence, the condition of the people in 'reserved' category shows no improvement. The entire idea of reservation is proving counter productive for the nation. The system has caused the upliftment of one section at the cost of another, which is not right and unfair. Instead, the state should establish equal opportunities for all. And moreover, a candidate who is capable does not need any certificate of his caste to prove his worth. 

To look at this from another perspective, by this reservation system, India is creating a workforce for the world which fails to compete globally. The system is adding undeserving candidates to society, while the truly meritorious candidates are left out.

There was once a quota system in the United States of America, but it was abolished. Does this mean they are not working towards the upliftment of the under-privileged. No. They constantly asses the effectiveness of their measures and modify the reforms for a more effective upliftment.

Now, in what way can we change this ? The government should first abolish all rules relating to reservation and demolish the reservation system. The actual under-privileged sections of society should be identified. The level of financial aid/assistance should be noted. Then provide free education and other incentives. Once this is achieved, let them face the true competition that is out in the world. 

Making them capable and achieving success by the right spirit will infuse a fighting spirit in them. 

GENERAL ELECTIONS 2014 (INDIA)

The 2014 Lok Sabha elections is going to play a pivotal role in shaping India's future, either for the better or worse. One cannot assume the elections to have a mediocre outcome, as our country is already in turmoil. The scams and the controversies over the past term of the ruling government speaks volumes of what kind of turmoil India is in. If no change is brought about immediately, the country will probably plunge into a future which is darker than the present, with much more serious repercussions and more over into a future of no return. To avoid this, a major overhaul is needed that can break this inertia of political involvement in our country, and aspire to bring us out of this despair. We need a government that will no longer utilize state resources with intent of just manipulating vote banks, or for the benefits of the ruling party; all of which just leads to a dent in the country's economy. We need a government that will utilize the resources systematically for the betterment of the nation.


Consider the recent suspension of the IAS officer Durga Shakti. The response or reaction of the Uttar Pradesh government to her suspension and the aftermath of public outrage, speaks of the attitude of the government. The wide coverage of the media made it quite obvious of the irrationality of the cause behind her suspense. Yet, she never received justice. This clearly indicates of how those at helm of this affair have misused and flouted their power. 

Now let us take a moment to see how baffling this is. They commit heinous crimes, the media makes it pretty obvious of the "Blunder" committed by these politicians, yet they are absolutely care free. This sense of invincibility among these leaders, comes from the fact that they are convinced of the effectiveness of of their ability to remain in power through series of backdoor deals. 

When individuals like them roam freely in the streets, and the police men who question them are either suspended or 'taken care of', what hope lies for the 'aam aadmi' or common man who is already facing the problems of poverty, hunger and injustice. 

Over a fifth of India's population is the youth. Despite having such rich human resource, India has failed miserably is reaping the full potential of the demographics. But something that we can be proud of is the fact that our youth is now more aware of the opportunities that exist, and aware that they have the right to claim it. They are no longer ready to get along with the situation. A high percentage which is unemployed is frustrated and resents the fact that they are not given these rights.

One example that can be observed is the ridiculous, rules and regulations regarding the reservations for examinations. The plight of the General Merit category is nothing less than that of the poor. Comprising of over 85% of the country's population, and are given opportunities equal to less that half that percentage. 
The SC,ST, OBC dominate. Despite reservation on caste being strictly disagreed upon during Independence, by Gandhiji. It was still adopted JUST for the 1st 5 year plan. We are now a 62 year old Republic and yet this law prevails and decides the destiny of the students. 


In the past decade, there have been several incidents that have left the nation in anger. Recently, the gang rape in Delhi led to a major debate over the effectiveness of the Government. The protests were a cry of despair as the government did not perform its duty. 

The 2014 General Elections are set to be test to the general sense of frustration of the people. Testing the frustration to both their personal and national problems. The UP government gave a majority to BSP, in Karnataka BJP had previously got a clear majority after years of malfunctioning governments. And now, Congress received a clear majority, which proves that the people, and the present day youth will not allow a dysfunctional alliance to stand. 

The conclusion is clear, the GE are likely to reflect this mood, so far as the BJP can present a unified front to the masses. 
With the recent success in Delhi, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. It definitely seems to be moving in the right direction, and we can expect an impressive performace by BJP. 

So, to say in short. Narendra Modi should gear up for the big job.

HOW THE MAJOR RELIGIONS CONQUERED THE WORLD

Christianity. Islam. Judaism. Buddhism. Hinduism. All the major religions have basically competed with each other in an epic, historical game of Risk. Who can get the most converts?
While some religions started out strong and faded out with time, some went on strong to paint the entire world.

The following video shows the timeline of religion from 3000 B.C to 2000 A.D. It also pauses at certain parts in time when religious figures were born.